24 | MARCH 10 • 2022 

and bring it into the future,
” 
which Berris did by welcoming 
women into the group, creating 
a new blended sound for “the 
singing congregation,
” he said. 
The choir was still going strong 
when he retired.
Replacing Cantor Louis 
Klein, B’nai Moshe’s beloved 
long-time cantor, was a chal-
lenge, but Berris already knew 
a lot of the congregants and 
immediately felt at home. He 
had a good working relation-
ship with Klein. “Cantor Klein 
made it easy on me,
” said Berris. 
Berris, who has composed 
many original melodies that are 
sung in synagogues around the 
world, was careful not to make 
any major changes right away. 
He would sneak a few of his 
tunes into the service here and 
there, interspersing them with 
those the congregation was used 
to from Cantor Klein. 
“
After a while, everyone 
thought they were Cantor 
Klein’s songs,
” he said. One 
congregant admired a melody, 
saying “I’ve been singing this for 
40 years.
”
Ilana Berris, a retired Hillel 
Day School teacher, chaired the 
synagogue’s education commit-

tee and taught in its religious 
school. 
“It was a good partnership for 
the congregation,
” he said.
For most of his years at B’nai 
Moshe, Berris, who turns 70 on 
March 19, worked with Rabbi 
Elliot Pachter, who is now the 
congregation’s rabbi emeritus 
and rabbinic adviser at Frankel 
Hebrew Academy.
“From the first time we met, 
Cantor Berris and I clicked 
personally and professionally,
” 
Pachter said. “He and I, and 
our families, became friends. I 
was honored to officiate at his 
daughters’ bat mitzvah services, 
and Cantor Berris was my sons’ 
bar mitzvah teacher. When his 
older daughter married, I was 

the officiating rabbi, and one of 
my sons was a witness. 
“We worked so well together, 
quickly learned and respected 
each other’s styles, and got 
to the point where we could 
almost read each other’s minds.
”
Pachter is particularly proud 
of two projects he worked on 
with Berris. One was the 2001: 
Shabbat Odyssey series held on 
summer Friday nights, where 
the cantor introduced lively new 
tunes. “The ruach (spirit) was 
great that summer,
” he said.
The second was a customized 
prayer book, Siddur Tefillah 
l’Moshe, created in 2008, that 
the congregation still uses every 
Shabbat. 
 “Cantor Berris and I person-

ally proofread each word and 
made sure it was exactly what 
we wanted,
” he said. “For us it 
was a labor of love and pride.
”
B’nai Moshe’s executive direc-
tor, Steve Fine, says, “Nothing 
rattled him, and he was on top 
of everything that was going on. 
Once, when I had the honor of 
doing hagbah (lifting the torah), 
no one on the bimah, nor in 
the congregation, noticed that 
a chair had not been placed for 
me to sit down on … with the 
exception of Cantor Berris.
” 
Fine also admired Berris’ 
skills as a bar mitzvah tutor. 
“He was the most patient bar/
bat mitzvah teacher I have ever 
seen,
” he said. “We shared an 
office wall so I could hear his 
lessons with his students.
” 
 If a student was having prob-
lems even a few weeks before 
the event, Berris never worried 
or showed anxiety, Fine said 
“Somehow and some way, the 
student always was ready on 
their bar/bat mitzvah day.
” 
The Berrises, who now live in 
Commerce Township, are stick-
ing close to home during the 
COVID pandemic. They enjoy 
visiting their daughter, Doron 
Vergun, her husband, Daniel, 
and their two boys, who live 
in Farmington Hills, and 
they’ve been to Los Angeles 
to visit their other daughter, 
Leore, a writer. 

“NOTHING RATTLED HIM, AND HE WAS ON TOP OF 

EVERYTHING THAT WAS GOING ON.”

— STEVE FINE

OUR COMMUNITY

continued from page 23

ABOVE: Cantor Earl Berris served B’nai Moshe for 23 years recently retired.

Fifteen area cantors will come together 
at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 20, to honor 
Earl Berris’ 23 years as the cantor at 
Congregation B’nai Moshe.
Donor Wall contributors are invited to 
attend the Cantor Earl Berris Retirement 
Concert in person in the synagogue’s 
sanctuary. Others can view the concert 
on Zoom or YouTube. 
The concert will include performances 

by Deborah Bletsein, Hilary Blair, Rachel 
Gottlieb Kalmowitz, Tiffany Green, Samuel 
Greenbaum, Daniel Gross, Steve Klaper, 
Frank Lanzkron-Tamarazo, Neil Michaels, 
Zach Mondrow, Kelly Onickel, David 
Propis, Pamela Schiffer, Michael Smolsh 
and Penny Steyer. The cantors will be 
accompanied by Cliff Monear.
For more information, visit www.bnai-
moshe.org.

Cantorial Concert Will Honor Berris on Retirement

